Storm Goretti: East Midlands passengers advised to travel early today (Thursday) where possible

Passengers in the East Midlands are advised to check before they travel as Storm Goretti is expected to bring heavy snow and strong winds to the region.

The Met Office has issued amber weather warnings for snow and rain which may affect train services.

To allow passengers to plan ahead, Network Rail and East Midlands Railway (EMR) will start to close down services on branch lines in the east of the region from 2000 today (Thursday)*.

While trains will run again as soon as possible, that is expected to be from 1000 on Friday.

Dan Matthews, Network Rail operations director, said:

“We are doing everything we can to prepare the railway for the impacts from Storm Goretti.

"In more remote parts of our network we’re anticipating the storm impact on roads will mean that our own staff will struggle to reach signal boxes and, potentially, to respond to incidents on the railway as they normally would. As a result, we and our colleagues in EMR have taken the difficult decision to remove late evening and early morning services.

“We’re really sorry for the impact which this will have on these communities but the safety and wellbeing of passengers and our own teams must come first. We’ll make sure websites and social media is kept up to date with the very latest information.

“We intend to run the full timetable on the Midland Main Line between London and Nottingham and Sheffield as this is controlled by central signalling and, generally, more accessible from main roads for our response teams. We will have extra teams out working and a snow plough working this route through the night. However, there may be delays and disruption caused by the storm here too so please plan ahead if you are travelling and continue to check your journey.”

Paul Barnfield, Operations Director at East Midlands Railway, said:

“Due to the impact of Storm Goretti, we and our colleagues at Network Rail have taken the difficult decision to withdraw some late evening and early-morning services.

“We know this will be disruptive and we’re sorry for the inconvenience. This decision has been taken to reduce the risk of trains becoming stranded during severe weather. Heavy snow can affect railway infrastructure such as signals and junctions, leading to trains being delayed or stuck for long periods, often in remote locations that are difficult to access.

“The safety and wellbeing of our customers and our colleagues must come first. We strongly recommend customers complete their journeys before 2000 today, even on routes which may not be as heavily affected.

“Ticket restrictions have been relaxed, allowing customers with tickets for Thursday or Friday to travel earlier on Thursday or instead on Saturday 10 January. If a journey cannot be completed or a service is cancelled, refunds are available from the original point of purchase. Customers are advised to check our website for the latest info.”

Snow and ice can make it difficult for trains to run safely. In very cold weather, snow and ice can build up on the tracks blocking points, the equipment that allows trains to move between tracks.

Ice can coat overhead power cables, preventing trains from drawing the power they need to run and leaving them stranded. Icicles on tunnels, bridges and other structures can also damage trains and overhead power cables.

*Full list of affected routes:

Liverpool Lime Street to Norwich

The Hope Valley, the line between Sheffield and Manchester, will be closed from 1800 on Thursday until the start of service on Saturday 10 January. This means that EMR services cannot run between Sheffield and Manchester for most of Thursday 8 and all of Friday 9 January.

The 0952 Norwich to Liverpool Lime Street (departing Sheffield at 1343) will be our last train towards Manchester and Liverpool on Thursday.

The 1551 Liverpool Lime Street to Norwich will be our last services from Liverpool and Manchester towards Sheffield, Nottingham and Norwich on Thursday.

No services will run between Sheffield and Manchester all day on Friday 9 January.

Additionally, the railway between Nottingham and Sheffield will be closed from 2000 on Thursday.

Crewe/Derby/Nottingham/Lincoln

The railway between Derby and Crewe will be closed after 2000 on Thursday evening and will reopen after 1000 on Friday morning.

Matlock/Derby/Nottingham/Lincoln/Cleethorpes

The railway between Derby and Matlock will be closed after 2000 on Thursday evening and will reopen after 1000 on Friday morning.

Nottingham/Mansfield/Worksop

The railway between Nottingham and Worksop will be closed after 2000 on Thursday evening and will reopen after 1000 on Friday morning.